


Sensible Shoes

by ShippenStand



Category: Black Widow (Comics), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: BAMF Natasha Romanov, Character Study, Comic Book Violence, Community: insmallpackages, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-10
Updated: 2014-12-10
Packaged: 2018-02-28 22:24:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2749337
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShippenStand/pseuds/ShippenStand
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For the insmallpackages gift exchange. The request was "ficlet of Natasha Romanov being badass"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sensible Shoes

**Author's Note:**

> Canon-typical violence.

It's almost laughable. He followed her down this hotel hallway, and when she stopped at a random door, pretending to look for her key, he turned her by her shoulder to face him. He's twice her weight and size, and he puts one hand under her armpit, the other grabbing the wrist of the opposite hand in a classic _Ristynės_ move, right out of the Lithuanian festival wrestling circuit. His next move will be to try to lift her and slam her to the floor, and Natasha has a split second to make a decision--stick with classic Sambo techniques, or use Krav Maga? Given the current political tensions, it's probably better to let him think she's Russian rather than Israeli.

Natasha lets him lift her out of her heels, and on the way up she brings her right knee under his chin, using her own strength and the momentum he's giving her with the lift, while she raises her hands. She can hear his jaws clamp shut with the lack of teeth-click that tells her he got his own tongue in the process. Her left leg is already up and curling around the back of his neck, and she bends backward, so that when he drops her in surprise, her full weight pulls him down, and she inverts, landing on her hands, bringing her legs over like a handspring, and then standing with both fists together to hit him under the jaw again. He snaps up, up and over backwards, but he doesn't land flat. He bends his spine and brings his feet up and over his head to roll, his hands pushing, and he's on his feet, facing her, ready, blood from the corner of his mouth.

His eyes are clearer than she expected. No Lithuanian folk wrestler, then. He pauses, sizing her up instead of rushing in again, and she has to respect him for learning from his mistakes. She drops a shoulder, puts a small crease above her brows and a slight squint to her eyes as if she is trying to hide fear, trying to make him think he's overestimating her now. She sees the slight shift in his weight, and as he comes in ready to grapple or to chase, she steps and slides underneath him, grabbing one of her shoes in one hand, and wrapping the other around his leg to bring him down, positioning the shoe so that he falls on the spike heel.

She gets up, and takes the Ruger from his waistband and his wallet from his back pocket, saying in Russian, " _That probably pierced your femoral artery. Do not take it out without a tourniquet and medical assistance, if you want to live and keep the leg._ " While speaking she takes his Singapore dollars for spare cash, and looks through his identification. Polish, which means nothing--she is carrying Lithuanian identification, ironically enough--but she repeats her instructions in that language as well, tucking the wallet back into his pocket, tucking the Ruger in her handbag, and picking up her other shoe.

She takes the elevator down, and by the time the door opens to the lobby she's a drunk tourist speaking accented English complaining about her broken shoe and calling for the concierge to get her a cab. She hands the doorman the shoe she has left, tucking a reasonable tip into the toe with a sloppy and flirtatious grin, and takes the first cab she sees.


End file.
